Anne Boleyn. Her Life as told by Lancelot de Carle's 1536 Letter.
In 1536, two weeks after the execution of Anne Boleyn, her brother George and four others, Lancelot du Carle, wrote an extraordinary letter that described Anne's life, and her trial and execution, to which he was a witness. This book presents a new translation of that letter, with additional material from other contemporary sources such as Letters, Hall's and Wriothesley's Chronicles, the pamphlets of Wynkyn the Worde, the Memorial of George Constantyne, the Portuguese Letter and the Baga de Secrets, all of which are provided in Appendices.
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Paternal Family Tree: Trentham
Maternal Family Tree: Jane Sneyd 1546-1616
Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford was born to [her father] Thomas Trentham and [her mother] Jane Sneyd at Rocester, Staffordshire [Map].
Around 1561 [her father] Thomas Trentham [aged 23] and [her mother] Jane Sneyd [aged 15] were married.
On 3rd August 1562 John de Vere 16th Earl of Oxford [aged 46] died. His son [her future husband] Edward [aged 12] succeeded 17th Earl of Oxford.
On 16th December 1571 a triple wedding was celebrated at Whitehall Palace [Map].. with Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 38] present...
Edward Sutton 4th Baron Dudley [aged 46] and Mary Howard Baroness Dudley [aged 23] were married. She by marriage Baroness Dudley. The difference in their ages was 23 years. They were fourth cousin once removed. He a great x 5 grandson of King Edward III of England.
[her future husband] Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 21] and Anne Cecil Countess of Oxford [aged 15] were married. She by marriage Countess of Oxford. He the son of John de Vere 16th Earl of Oxford and Margery Golding Countess of Oxford.
Edward Somerset 4th Earl of Worcester [aged 21] and Elizabeth Hastings Countess of Worcester [aged 25] were married. She by marriage Countess Worcester. She the daughter of Francis Hastings 2nd Earl Huntingdon and Catherine Pole Countess Huntingdon [aged 60]. He the son of William Somerset 3rd Earl of Worcester [aged 45] and Christina North Countess of Worcester. They were third cousin once removed.
Around 1580 Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford was appointed Maid of Honour to Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 46].
On or before 25th May 1587, the date he was buried at Rocester Abbey [Map], [her father] Thomas Trentham [aged 49] died.
Before 27th December 1591 Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 41] and Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford were married. She by marriage Countess of Oxford. She brought her husband a dowry of £1000 bequeathed to her in her father's will, payable at the rate of 500 marks a year for three years. He the son of John de Vere 16th Earl of Oxford and Margery Golding Countess of Oxford.
On 24th February 1593 [her son] Henry de Vere 18th Earl of Oxford was born to [her husband] Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 42] and Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford. He married 1st January 1624 his fifth cousin once removed Diana Cecil Countess of Oxford and Elgin, daughter of William Cecil 2nd Earl Exeter and Elizabeth Drury Countess Exeter.
On 26th January 1595 William Stanley 6th Earl of Derby [aged 34] and [her step-daughter] Elizabeth Vere Countess Derby [aged 19] were married. She by marriage Countess Derby. She the daughter of [her husband] Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 44] and Anne Cecil Countess of Oxford. He the son of Henry Stanley 4th Earl of Derby and Margaret Clifford Countess Derby [aged 55]. They were fifth cousins. He a great x 2 grandson of King Henry VII of England and Ireland.
On 2nd September 1597 Queen Elizabeth I of England and Ireland [aged 63] granted licence to the executors of Sir Rowland Hayward to sell King's Place [Map] in the Hackney in north London to Elizabeth Trentham, her brother Francis Trentham of Rocester [aged 33], her uncle Ralph Sneyd [aged 70], and her cousin, Giles Yonge [aged 43]. The acquisition of King's Place by Elizabeth Trentham and her relatives placed it 'beyond the reach of Oxford's creditors'.
Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes
Récits d’un bourgeois de Valenciennes aka The Chronicle of a Bourgeois of Valenciennes is a vivid 14th-century vernacular chronicle written by an anonymous urban chronicler from Valenciennes in the County of Hainaut. It survives in a manuscript that describes local and regional history from about 1253 to 1366, blending chronology, narrative episodes, and eyewitness-style accounts of political, military, and social events in medieval France, Flanders, and the Low Countries. The work begins with a chronological framework of events affecting Valenciennes and its region under rulers such as King Philip VI of France and the shifting allegiances of local nobility. It includes accounts of conflicts, sieges, diplomatic manoeuvres, and the impact of broader struggles like the Hundred Years’ War on urban life in Hainaut. Written from the perspective of a burgher (bourgeois) rather than a monastery or royal court, the chronicle offers a rare lay viewpoint on high politics and warfare, reflecting how merchants, townspeople, and civic institutions experienced the turbulence of the 13th and 14th centuries. Its narrative style combines straightforward reporting of events with moral and civic observations, making it a valuable source for readers interested in medieval urban society, regional politics, and the lived experience of war and governance in pre-modern Europe.
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On 28th April 1599 Francis Norreys 1st Earl Berkshire [aged 19] and [her step-daughter] Bridget Vere Baroness Norreys Rycote [aged 15] were married. She the daughter of [her husband] Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 49] and Anne Cecil Countess of Oxford. He the son of William Norreys and Elizabeth Morrison Countess Lincoln. They were fifth cousin once removed.
On 27th June 1601 Henry Norreys [aged 76] died at Rycote, Oxfordshire [Map]. His grandson Francis [aged 21] succeeded 2nd Baron Norreys of Rycote. [her step-daughter] Bridget Vere Baroness Norreys Rycote [aged 17] by marriage Baroness Norreys of Rycote. Francis Norreys 1st Earl Berkshire inherited the Rycote and Wytham estates. His title to his estates was challenged by his uncle, Sir Edward Norreys, but the latter died in 1603, whose estates also passed to Lord Norreys.
On 24th June 1604 [her husband] Edward de Vere 17th Earl of Oxford [aged 54] died at his home in King Street Covent Garden. His son Henry [aged 11] succeeded 18th Earl of Oxford.
In 1609 Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford purchased Hedingham Castle [Map] from her late husband's three daughters by his first wife so that Hedingham Castle [Map] remained in the estate of her son Henry de Vere 18th Earl of Oxford [aged 15].
On 1st April 1609 Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford sold King's Place Hackney [Map] to Fulk Greville 13th Baron Latimer 5th Baron Willoughby 1st Baron Brooke [aged 54].
Around December 1612 Elizabeth Trentham Maid of Honour Countess of Oxford died.
GrandFather: Richard Trentham of Rocester Abbey
Father: Thomas Trentham
Elizabeth TrenthamCountess of Oxford
GrandFather: William Sneyd of Bradwell Cheshire
Mother: Jane Sneyd